Apparatus for making flat glass



F. GELSTHARP ET AL APPARATUS FOR MAKING FLAT GLASS 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 l Filed Aug. 14, 1934 IN VEN TORS FZEDERI'CK GA-:z s-rHnRp n /Q HN PAF-o( BY l @La TTORNEYS.

Feb. 25, 1936.

. Feb. 25, 1936; F. GELSTHARP ET AL APPARATUS FOR MAKING FLAT GLASS Filed Aug. 14, 1934 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VEN TORf)` w Cm,

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' Feb, 25, 1036. y F. GELSTHARP E, A1. 2,032,009

APPARATUS FOR MAKING FLAT GLASS Filed, Aug, 14, 1934 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENT ORS @W7/@2 ATTORNEYS Feb. 25, 1936. F. GELSTHARP ET A1.

APPARATUS FOR MAKING FLAT GLASS Filed Aug. 14, 1934 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Y \\y Z3 IN VEN TORS mense/c1( 62E-.5 THE/QP g/o HN H -O K BY( t ai, w

TTORNEYS.

Patented Feb. 25, 19.36

UNITED STATES PATENT oFFlCE APPARATUS FOR MAKING FLAT GLASS Frederick Gelstharp, Tarentum, and` John H. Fox, Pittsburgh, Pa., assignors to Pittsburgh PlateGlass Company, a corporation of Pennsylvania y Y Application August 14, 1934, Serial No. 739,724

' s claims.. (o1. 'y19-33) The invention relates to apparatus for making usual way and are supported in the frame mernvriiat glass continuously and'particularly iiat glass bers l2 and I3 (Fig. 3). The tumbler shafts are having a re polishon itsvupper surface so that driven from a` drive shaft I4 through the gears only the lowerfsurface has to be ground and pol- I5 andl suitable reduction gearing in the casing 5 ished in order to produce a product which,jfor I6 which is well known in the art and requires no 5 -some purposes, may be substituted for plate glass. detailed description. The sizing rolls are provided One purpose for which this glass is particularly at their ends with suitable swivels I1, I8, I9 and applicable is'in `the manufacture of safety glass, 20 connected to water pipes 2| so that a cooling the fire polished surface of the glass being placed flow of water may be passed through the rolls in 10 next to the reinforcing sheet, so that the'nished the usual way. The glass sheet as it emerges 10 product shows only the polished plate surfaces. from the sizing rolls passes over a hollow apron One Aobject of the invention is the provision of an 22 made in sections and suitably cooled. It then improvedA apparatus for vproducing a. product passes over a runway made up of alternate rolls which is at and of uniform thickness and has 23 'and apron sections 24 to a roller leer (not an upper fire polishedsurface in which the wavy shown) through which the sheet is carried and 15 lor. battered appearance, 'characteristic of a fire annealed, being out into sections at the outlet polished 'flat glass, is avoided to a considerable end thereof. A cover `25 is positioned over the degree. A further object is the` provision of an runway to keep the glass from cooling too rapidrimproved construction which permits the quick 1y. and burner pipes 26 are arranged transversereplacement of the upper sizing lroll which dely above the glass sheet in order to supply addi- 20 termines the thickness of the sheet without intional heat, this being desirable in some cases in terrupting the continued formation of the sheet. order to improve the re finish upon the upper A still further object is the provision of improved surfaces of the sheet.

. means for keeping the upper sizing roll clean and The sizing rolls and runway are preferably in' a highly polished condition and for cooling mounted upon a truck or roll car 21 carried by 25 such roll so that overheating and warping is the rails 28, which permits this part of the appaavoided. Certain embodiments of the invention ratus to be removed from the front of the tank are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, for replacement or repair of parts carried by the wherein: i car, and to give access to the front end of the r Figure 1 is a verticalsection on the line I--I tank when occasion requires. The roll car has 30 of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a section on the line II-Il rigidly supported thereon a pair of uprights or of Fig. 1. Fig.3 is adiagrammatic front elevation standards 29 adjacent to the ends of the sizing on the line II-II of Fig. 1v showing the apparatus rolls which act as guides for` the bearings in which for' removing the top sizingroll and replacing it the rolls are mounted, as later described. The

by another roll without interrupting the operaapron 22 is adjustably supported upon these 35 vtion of the apparatus. Fig. 4 is a detail side elestandards by means 0f a pail* 0f IOdS 30 DiVOtd vation view. Figs. 5 and 6` are sections on the to the apron at 3| and extending through brackliIleS V-V and VI-VI leSDeGtVBlY 0f Fig. 4. ets 32 at the upper ends of the standards. The And Fig- 7 iS adetail Sectional View` illllSlatng upper ends oi the rods are threaded as illustrated,

40 amodcatlon' and carry the nuts 33 having the handles 34 by 0 Referring to the drawlngs, I 1S the Outlet end means`of the apron may be adjusted up of a' melting tank containing a molten body 0f and down to correspond to the adjustment ofthe glass, and provided at its front end with a wall 2 sizing rolls.

having a slot 3 therethrough to permit of the con- Th t e lower sizing roll 8 1s carried 1n a pair of tinuous withdrawal of glassfrom the tank to form bear. gs 35 whose right hand Sides (Fig. 1) are the slot may be regulated. y The frame has con ards 29' The bearmgs are a'dlustable Vertlcauy nected to its upper end a chain leading to an by means of the threaded Shafts 35 bearmg at overhead crane to permit of the ready replacethe upper ends upon the bottoms 0f the bearings 50 ymem, 0f the from; Wan,v i and extending through the nuts 3l supported The thickness of the glass sheet is regulated 119011 the bOdy portion 38 0f the rOll car. 'Ihese by the sizing rolls 8 and 9. These sizing rolls are 1111125 3T are provided With Worm Wheels 39 .en-

i driven from tumbler shafts- ||l and which are gaged by worms 40 carried upon a shaft 4| and releasably coupled to the ends of the rolls in the this shaft is provided with a crank (not shown) 55 whereby the nuts 31 may be rotated to adjust the bearings 35 to the proper height.

The upper sizing roll 9 is mounted in a pair of bearings 42 having guide portions 43 which are `indirectly mounted upon the standards 29 for vertical adjustment and to permit of the removal Y of the bearings and the roll from the apparatus in an expeditious manner when it becomes necessary to remove the roll and substitute another one. Mounted directly upon the standards 29 are a pair of hollow posts or slide members 44 whose ends rest at 45 upon suitable shoulders upon the standards and whose upper ends are provided with laterally extending abutments or flanges 46 which project above the bearings` 42 in opposition thereto. The members 44 act as guides for the bearing extensions 43, heretofore referred to as being mounted indirectly upon the standards 29.

The abutments 46 carry nuts 41 through which 'are threaded the hollow screws 48, and between the lower end of these screws and the bearing blocks 42 are interposed the coil springs `49. This provides a means for yieldingly pressing the upper sizing roll 9 downward to regulate its pressure upon the glass 4being formed between such roll and the lower sizing roll k8. In order to rotate the screws 48, the` upper ends thereof are squared, asindicated at 50, to provide for the application ofa wrench for rotating the screws, and thus adjusting the tension ofthe springs 49.

Extending across the upper ends of the posts or slide members 44 'and secured thereto so as to tiek such members together vis an I-beam 5|. The abutments 46 are similarly connected by means of ya channel 52. Seated upon the I-beam and channel at each end thereof for free upward movement is a U-shaped block 53, in each of which is mounted a worm wheel 54 and a worm 55 meshing therewith. The worms 55 are carried by stub shafts 56 provided at their ends with the crank arms 51 and such stub shafts are connected together by means of the shaft sections 58 and 59, the outer'ends of such sections having theuniversal'jointconnections 69 with thestub shafts.v

The -inner ends of the shaft sections 58 and 59 are .connected together by the sleeve 6| which is pinnedlto the shaftsection 58 and has a splined connection with the shaft section 5'I.y lThreaded through the worm wheels 54 are the shafts 62 which extend down through the hollow shafts 48 and are provided at their lower ends withy heads 63 engaging T-slots in the bearing blocks 42.

This provides a means for positively moving the ythe universal joints 60, 60'and the splined connectionfl, permits independent upward movement at the ends of the roll 9L so that such ro I may tilt when occasionarises.`

indexing bolts 64, 64 which pass through recesses in the posts 44 and in the xed standards' 29. The arrangement as above described permits of the ready removal of the upper roll 9, and its replacement by another roll without interrupting the operation of the apparatus when occasion arises for such replacement. At this time, the indexing bolts 64 are removed and the entire apparatus which supports the roll 9, including the posts 44 and bearing blocks 42, is moved vertically by means of a pair of cablesv65 attached at their lower endsto trunnions 66?'proje`cting laterally from the upper ends of the' posts 44, and at their upper ends secured to 'the crane 61 shown in Fig. 3, such crane being mounted upon a trolley position indicated in Fig. 3, it is moved to the left alonggthe,beam` 68 so that it is out of the way. Also mounted upon the beam 68 is a second crane 69, which supports upon the cables l a duplicate throughout of the apparatus which is being removed on the crane 61. The crane-raises this apparatus to a point above the level of the top of the standards 29, after which it is moved to the right to a position over such standards. It is now lowered so that 'thestandards engage the guide posts. and is moved downto operative position, at which time the indexing boltsv64 f are inserted, thus locking the posts 44 in position.

`beam 68.' When the apparatus is lifted to the 'I'his replacement operationl can be accomplished in a few minutes so that there is no interruption to the formation ofthe sheet, and the only' loss which occurs is the section of the lsheet which has passed the roll 8 during the shifting operation.

The roll 9 may be of carbon. having a. very smooth surface, but itis preferablyof some refractory metalcompositionsuch kas a nickel chromium alloy which will :take a high D0lish.

This smooth finish upon the upper roll is desirable in order to prevent vmarring of the upper ysurface ofthe glass sheet. -which-is formed. 41in the operation of apparatus of -this kind, a certain amount of alkaline'dust .from the tank collects upon the surface of the upper roll, and provision is made in the present apparatus for continuously removing this dust and for lpolishinggthe roll.

This is -preferably accomplished by the use of a series of polishing andcleaning pads 'H mounted on a` plate 12; carried in theV lower portion of the hood 13. These polishing pads maybe of asbestos, soap stone,v flne wire, or otherrsuitable material, and the hood is preferably mounted for movement longitudinally of the roll in order to give a better distribution of the cleaning and polv ishing action upon the roll. In order to permit of ythis movement of the hood, it is supported upon a exible pipe 14 which extends between and is secured to the members 5| and 52. The outer end of this pipe is connected to a suitable exhausting apparatus, which is not' shown, so that a ilow of i,

air occurs upward between the periphery of the roll and the lower edges of the hood. This is desirable in order tor carry away any dust or dirt incident to the polishing action of the brushes or4 order to reciprocate the hood and brushes carriedr` therebya motor `'i5 (Fig, 2) is employed carried by the vlower side of the' I-beam 5I.` y'Ihis motor drives a shaft 16 which operates through reducverseiy extending shaft 18. The shaft `I8 carries a crank 19 which operates theconnecting rod .80 connected at its end to the bar 8l.` This bar 8| has apin andslot connection 82A at its lower end nsv upper end is pivoted to a bracket 84 carried by the beam l. The shaft 16 has at its outer end a one-way roller clutch 85,.one of the parts of l which is provided with a sprocket, and over this sprocket passes a chain 86 which extends at its lower end around a sprocket 81 carried by the roll 3. This provides an alternative method for rotating the shaft 16 and swinging the bar 8| roughened, preferably by knurllng, as indicated in Fig. 2. This gives the lower side of the glass sheet a Acorrespondingly roughened surface and has been found to have the eect of improving the upper surface of the glass by reducing the wavy effect characteristic of a fire-finished surface. One of the apron rolls 23 is preferably positioned, as indicated inl Fig. 1 with its periphery slightly above the level of the other apron rolls 23 and the platen members 24, which has been found to v reduce the sizeof any longitudinal utes remaining in the glass at this point, thus giving a somewhat iiatter sheet and consequently a better upper surface than would otherwise be the case.

In operating the apparatus, the speed of rolling is preferably relatively high, as compared with the speed at which plate glass is formed that is to be ground and polished on both sides. 'I'his inches perminute.

with the upper surface of the sheet (in forming 'the sizing function) results in a she'et whose upper surface is relatively free from blemish and has a good fire polish. Any marring effect on such surface incidentI to the contact of the upper roll therewith'is reduced to a minimum due to the highly polished condition in which the upper roll is maintained and to the fact that the residual heat in the glass after it passes the sizing rolls is sufficient to largely remove any traces of roll contact. The burners 26, 26 are of service in this connection since they Y add to the heat in the glass and tend to improve the fire nish, although in some cases this additional heat is not required. In connection with the replacement of the upper roll apparatus as heretofore described, it will be understood that the tumbler shafts have a splined connection with the end of the upper roll 8, as indicated at 88 (Fig. 3), to permit of the ready disconnection of the shaft 'with the roll.

Fig. '7 illustrates a modification in which a different means is shown for raising and lowering the shaft 62. InsteadA of the use of the lworm wheel and Worm 54, 56, as shown in Figs. l and 4, for accomplishing this function, each of the vscrews is provided with a nut 80 having a handle 92 whereby the shaft may be raised and lowered to secure the desired adjustment.

What we claim is:

1. In combination with Va glass melting tank having an outlet and a lower driven sizing roll over which the glass is delivered in a continuous sheet, an upper driven sizing roll in opposition to the lower roll, upright standards at the ends ofthe rolls, bearings for the upper roll mounted on the standards and removable therefrom by vertical movement upward, posts guided for vertical movement on the standards with abutments lying above the bearings and also removable by vertical movement upward, springs between the abutments and the bearings, adjustable means carried by the abutments for compressing the springs, means for releasably locking the posts to the standards, and means supported on the posts for adjusting the bearing blocks upward to regulate the space between the rolls.

2. In combination with a glass melting tank having an outlet and a lower driven sizing roll over which the glass is delivered in a oontinuous sheet, an upper driven sizing roll in opposition to the lower roll, upright standards at the ends of the rolls, bearings for the upper roll mounted on the standards and removable therefrom by vertical movement upward, posts guided for vertical movement on the standards with abutments lying above the bearings and also removable by vertical movement upward, springs between the abutments and the bearings, screw means carried by the abutments for compressing the springs, means for releasably locking the posts to the standards, and screw means carried by the posts for adjusting the bearing blocks upward to regulate the space between the rolls.

3. In combination with a glass melting tank having van outlet and a lower driven sizing roll over which the glass is delivered in a .continuous sheet, an upper driven sizing roll in opposition to the lower roll, .upright standards at the ends of the rolls, bearings for the upper roll mounted on the standards-and removable therefrom by vermovement upward, springs between the abut- 4vments and the bearings, hollow screws carried by the abutments for compressing the springs, means for releasably locking the posts to the standards, and screws supported on the posts and extending through the hollow screws for adjusting the bearing blocks upward to regulate the space between the rolls.

4. In combination with a glass melting tank having an outlet and a lower driven sizing roll over which the glass is delivered in a continuous sheet, an upper driven sizing. roll in opposition to the lower roll, upright standards at the ends of the rolls, provided with longitudinally extending guides, posts slidably mounted on the guides and provided with abutments projecting over the roll ends, bearings for the upper roll slidably mounted on the posts for movement longitudinally thereof, springs between the abutments and the bearings, screw means carried by the abutments for compressing the springs, means for releasably locking the posts against upwardA movement on the standards, and screw means supported on the posts above the abutments and engaging the bearings for adjusting the bearings upward to regulate the space between the rolls.

5. In combination with a glass melting tank having an outlet anda lower driven sizing roll over which the glass is delivered in a continuous sheet, an upper driven sizing roll in opposition to the lower roll, a hood fitting down over the upper roll partially enclosing it with its lower edges spaced away from its periphery to provide air admission slots, and means for exhausting the air from the hood.

6. In combination with a glass melting tank having an outlet and a lower driven sizing roll over which the glass is delivered in a continuous sheet, an upper driven sizing roll in opposition to the lower roll, a hood fitting down over the upper roll partially enclosing it with its lower edges spaced away from the periphery to provide air admission slots, means for exhausting the air from the hood, and polishing means in the hood engaging the surface of the upper roll.

7. In combination with a glass melting tank having an outlet and a lower driven sizing roll over which the glass is delivered in a continuous sheet, an upper driven sizing roll in opposition to the lower roll, a hood fitting down over the upper roll partially enclosing it with'its lower edges spaced away from its periphery to provide air admission slots, means for exhausting the air from the hood, polishing means carried by the pattern,v and an upper driven sizing roll and hav- 1n ing its surface polished. f

. FREDERICK GELSTHARP.

JOHN H. FOX. 

